No. 12 Eagles End Regular Season With Two Home Wins

There was a lot at stake for the No. 12-ranked Ashland University wrestling team on Saturday (Feb. 12):
 
- A chance to finish the 2021-22 regular season with a 4-0 record in Kates Gymnasium.
- A chance to get some momentum going into the Region 3 Championships on Feb. 26 at West Liberty.
- And a chance to send its eight-grappler senior class out on the right note at home.
 
The Eagles accomplished all three things on Saturday, as they topped Mount Union (26-16) and Glenville State (37-14).
 
"It feels pretty good. That was a good way to move into regionals," said Ashland head coach Colt Sponseller. "We kind of came in slow today, and then we still got the win (against Mount Union), which was good. This last match, we were really in the groove."
 
WHAT HAPPENED

• Against the Purple Raiders, the Eagles fell into a 10-0 hole before turning it on. Highlighting the 26-6 run to close out the win were pins from senior 157-pounder Chance Esmont and junior 165-pounder Drew Wiechers, and a 16-0 technical fall from junior 285-pounder Ty Petrey.
• Against the Pioneers, Eagle pins were earned by junior 141-pounder Luke Wymer, sophomore 197-pounder Walker Uhl and Petrey. Sophomore 133-pounder Gavin Weaver earned a 21-3 technical fall, and senior 125-pounder Christian Wellman and Esmont each had major decisions.
• "I think we looked pretty good. We still need to fine-tune some things," Esmont said. "We're just trying to heal up. There's bumps and bruises on every team this time of year. That's the ultimate goal – get all 10 guys to nationals."
• "You can't be more proud of this group of seniors," Sponseller said. "They put a lot of time in here and were successful."

 
UP NEXT
Regionals in West Liberty, with qualifiers advancing to the 2022 NCAA Division II Championships, March 11-12 in St. Louis, Mo.
  125 – Jack Stanley (MU) dec. Christian Wellman (AU), 3-0                  3-0 MU
133 – David Massey (MU) maj. dec. Gavin Weaver (AU), 11-0            7-0 MU
141 – Jordin James (MU) dec. Luke Wymer (AU), 9-6                           10-0 MU
149 – Jesse Bowers (AU) dec. Zach Berdysz (MU), 11-6                        10-3 MU
157 – Chance Esmont (AU) pin Jesse Wright (MU), 1:29                       10-9 MU
165 – Drew Wiechers (AU) pin Kristopher Jones (MU), 2:29                15-10 AU
174 – Cameron Jenkins (AU) dec. Chris Anderson (MU), 6-3              18-10 AU
184 – George Lassnick (MU) pin Aidan Pasiuk (AU), 5:49                   18-16 AU
197 – Walker Uhl (AU) dec. Warren Gentile (MU), 8-1                         21-16 AU
285 – Ty Petrey (AU) tech. fall Garrett O'Connell (MU), 16-0              26-16 AU
  125 – Christian Wellman (AU) maj. dec. Kevin Meloni (GS), 14-3       4-0 AU
133 – Gavin Weaver (AU) tech. fall Alec Fulwider (GS), 21-3              9-0 AU
141 – Luke Wymer (AU) pin Devin Easton (GS), 2:19                           15-0 AU
149 – Gavin Quiocho (GS) tech. fall Jesse Bowers (AU), 22-6               15-5 AU
157 – Chance Esmont (AU) maj. dec. Tristan Pugh (GS), 12-3              19-5 AU
165 – Drew Wiechers (AU) wins by forfeit                                              25-5 AU
174 – Hunter DeLong (GS) dec. Cameron Jenkins (AU), 9-5                25-8 AU
184 – Cole Hauser (GS) wins by forfeit                                                    25-14 AU
197 – Walker Uhl (AU) pin Christian Ramsey (GS), 1:36                      31-14 AU
285 – Ty Petrey (AU) pin Devan Gauldin (GS), 1:53                              37-14